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food + feelings + adventures

Sunrise from OHSU | Portland Aerial Tram

I can’t believe it took me four years of living here before I finally rode the Portland Aerial Tram, especially since for the last 21 months I’ve lived within a 10 minute walk of it.

But, here we are, four plus years of living in Portland and finally getting myself up in that little bubble. The sunrise view below is from an observation deck at OHSU’s Kohler Pavilion on a morning that clouds covered the city in its early morning hours.

Mt. Hood peeks out from a distance, and the tram sneaks its way up to the top.

I thought it’d be terrifying; I’m not much for heights, but it surprisingly wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. The ride’s actually pretty smooth, and totally worth it for these views.

In 2014, Megan and I hosted our first annual Easter brunch. We all got day drunk on champagne and bacon and spent the afternoon in a hazy dance party looking for trouble that we never actually ended up finding (but hey, there’s something to be said for lazying around your living room with your people, right).

This year, we hosted the Second Annual Zombie Jesus Brunch, which consisted of more quiche than champagne and was exactly the right balance of Grown-Up Day Partying and Don’t Worry, We Still Have Plenty of Bubbles.

This year’s spread included Way Too Many Quiches, which was totally my fault because I got a little pink bubble day drunk on Saturday and bought too much quiche-stuff. However, in my defense, when I bought the pie crusts, I thought I was buying three, when in fact I was buying three packs of TWO. So, then I had six pie crusts, and I just went for it.

Go big, right?

Two were sausage and pepper, two were asparagus and morels, and the winners were the two prosciutto and Swiss cheese.

Also making an appearance on the table: noodle kugel, bacon, more bacon, sausage, asparagus, deviled eggs, banana bread, pain au chocolat (aka loaves of brownies), candy, strawberries, Spella coffee, and many bubbles. Oh! And we totally enjoyed an entire bottle of pre-batched Negronis from the President of Negroni himself (thanks, Doug!).

Easter brunch, now with Negronis, tulips, PBR, and @PretentiousPDX, instagramming from my couch.

Both animals made an appearance; Roxy long enough to eat her own food, prove she really exists (some friends didn’t think so, because they’ve never seen her — she’s sweet and friendly, but quite a bit shy), and Pants was all over everyone for head pats and the possibility of any dropped morsels he could scavenge.

He also gave a lot of hugs, wore a bow tie, and won all of the hearts.

I wore a floral skirt, because spring. Friends brought flowers and five-year-olds and big, big hearts.

We loved hosting our humans – new and old – for the second year in a row. And yes, we’re still enjoying our leftover bubbles and quiche.

Photo credit: all are Megan’s

Sandwich Quest: Lardo’s Pho’Rench Dip

I love sandwiches.

That’s not an earth-shattering statement, by any means. Many people love sandwiches. Everything from turkey and cheese on sliced bread with mayo to much more extravagant offerings, The Sandwich is the perfect little package of meat, cheese, produce, sauces, and bread.

I realize that’s an over-simplification, and let’s not get started on the “What IS a sandwich?” conversation, but for all intents and purposes, The Sandwich is one of food’s greatest accomplishments.

I have a lot of opinions about sandwiches, and I especially love when sandwich purveyors get a little crafty and creative, giving classics a modern twist, or playing with different regions and cuisines.

Portland’s Lardo nailed the latter with their Pho’Rench Dip, a play on the French Dip that pairs the sandwich with beef pho broth instead of au jus and makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

The broth comes with traditional pho accompaniments including jalapeños, cilantro, green onions, and a lime wedge, and the sandwich itself includes a layer of bean sprouts and sambal mayo, layered over hoisin-covered roast beef.

Everything’s held in tact on sturdy ciabatta bread that holds up to being dunked in aromatic beef broth.

Freakin’ GENIUS.

White & Rust | NYC 2011

Found myself on top of a building in NYC one afternoon, and this was the door that led to and from the rooftop. I liked the rust, so I took this photo.

Benson Bubbler | Portland, OR

I took this photo of a Benson Bubbler during my second visit to Portland, in August 2010.

McKenzie River Run – June 28, 2015

I just love saying ‘yes’ to adventures, don’t you?

This past Sunday, I said yes to a friend-guided rafting run down the McKenzie River, east of Eugene, Oregon. We packed a cooler bag full of beer, sandwiches, and snacks, rented life vests (or PFDs), and hopped in.

It’s my third river run ever (having done Colorado’s Arkansas River in 2006 and Costa Rica’s Pacuare in 2012) and another solid reminder that this is, in fact, A Thing I Love to Do.

It’s been just over 24 hours since I got off that river and already, I want to know — how soon can I do that again?

Thoughts Become Things

Once a year or so, I watch ‘The Secret’ as part of a personal reset and reminder that our thoughts are significant and our attitudes are everything.

It’s a cheesy-ish presentation of the Law of Attraction, but the information is legit. Every single time I watch it (and practice things like gratitude and positive intention), things turn around immediately for myself or those around me. Call it what you will (intentions, prayer, attitude adjustment, focus, whatever), but the shift in perspective, be it a complete 180 or a teeny tiny pivot, matters. Every. Time.